


Searching

by KBwrites



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-06
Updated: 2019-11-11
Packaged: 2020-08-10 07:30:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 20,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20131657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KBwrites/pseuds/KBwrites
Summary: Daryl leaves the prison to search for Carol.





	1. Chapter One

Rick stepped in front of the prison gate, blocking it with his body. “I don’t like you goin’ out there alone like this.”

The engine roared as Daryl kick started the chopper, flipping the poncho over his shoulder as he gave it some gas. “More people’d just scare the deer. M’better on my own anyway.”

“And I stopped believing that after what happened at the farm.” He had that tone like he was about to pull rank. Didn’t matter though. Daryl was going out either way. He dipped his head toward the bike. “Ain’t nothing to worry about so long as I don’t have to deal with no damn horse.”

Rick cocked his head to the side and squinted into the morning sun. “I guess there’s no talking you out of it then.” Daryl nodded once and walked the bike forward as Rick slid the gate to the side. “Just be careful out there, brother.” He put a hand on Daryl’s shoulder.

“Be back by sundown. Sooner if I get somethin’.”

Rick nodded once and clapped him on the back before Daryl revved the engine and sped down the gravel road out to the highway.

Once he was out of hearing distance from the prison, Daryl let the bike roll to a stop and cut the engine. He reached back to the saddlebag and pulled out the map. The neighborhood where Rick had left Carol was a small dot in the middle of a set of gridlines. It was the same way they had searched for Sophia but he was gonna make damn sure it worked this time.

Today he was gonna continue his search down Miner’s Creek, a small creek west of the highway that fed the stream at the prison. If Carol was gonna set up camp somewhere, she’d make sure to find a place with fresh water. They’d been surviving long enough to know that. He shoved the map back into the saddlebag and kicked the engine to life, heading north the few miles to the point where he’d left off yesterday.

#

After stashing the bike behind a patch of trees, he grabbed his crossbow and slung it over his shoulder with the canteen. He’d have to keep a lookout for a few squirrels on the way too. If he kept coming back empty handed Rick would start to wonder what he was really doing every day.

He kept the sun behind his left shoulder and headed west through the forest. He walked slowly, quietly, turning his head back and forth, searching for a roofline hidden in the trees. There weren’t a lot of houses out here, but he’d seen a few in the last few days, small cabins that people used to keep as vacation places by the creek. He snorted softly. He’d always considered himself lucky to have one roof over his head, let alone two.

The sun had climbed to the middle of the sky when he saw it, a small cabin near the bank of the creek almost completely hidden by trees, with a station wagon parked in the driveway. Part of him wanted to rush forward, yelling her name and wrapping his arms around her when she came out of the house. Hell, he’d probably lift her off the ground he’d be so damn happy to see her.

But there was another part of him that hesitated. What if Rick was right? What if she really wasn’t sorry for what she’d done at the prison? What if she’d finally lost her shit? This world could do that to people. Especially people who weren’t used to dealing with fucked up shit on a regular basis. But that wasn’t Carol. She’d been through shit before all this happened. She was tough. If she did it, she must have had her reasons.

Still, the part of him that hesitated won out. It was smarter to wait. To watch for a bit and see how she was doing. He made a wide circle toward the back of the house, staying low and quiet. When he could finally see around the corner, she was there, hanging laundry on a clothesline in the backyard. She was pinning up a blouse, holding a couple clothespins in her mouth while she fiddled with the thing.

For a minute he just watched her. It was almost like he was seeing her life back before all of this happened. Before Sophia died. When she was still married to that useless son of a bitch. He clenched his fists just thinking about that piece of shit, wishing he would’ve been the one to beat the hell out of him instead of Shane.

She bent down to the laundry basket again and pulled out a pair of panties this time, a pair of black, lacy things no bigger than his handkerchief. The twitch in his groin made him feel like he shoulda just walked up to the front door after all, instead of hiding in the bushes watching her like some kind of pervert. His face was hot as he shifted his position, getting ready to head back to the front of the house.

A twig snapped under his heel when he moved and she spun around, still holding the panties in one hand as she reached for the knife at her belt. He ducked and tried to keep silent and still while she scanned the forest. She was like a doe that’d been spooked, all he could do was wait for her to go back to her chores so he could get back to the front door like he shoulda in the first place.

After a few more seconds of searching, she turned back to the line and clipped the panties in place, then picked up the basket and perched it on her hip as she headed down to the creek. Once she was out of sight, he sat back against a tree and waited for his heart to slow down. The blood was still hot in his cheeks. He’d have to let it get back to normal before he saw her again. Otherwise, she’d figure out what he’d seen. She always noticed more than people gave her credit for.

He took the canteen off his shoulder and unscrewed the cap, taking a drink and splashing a little on his face to cool it down.

“Don’t move.” Her voice rang out behind him, hard as ice. She must have circled back up from the creek and he hadn’t even heard her coming. Damn she was getting good. He wanted to laugh that she’d actually been able to sneak up on him, but then he remembered he’d have to explain why he was back there, watching her. The blood rushed into his face again as he held the canteen in the air.

“Don’t shoot,” he said.

“Daryl?” Her voice was different now, soft and surprised.

He stood up and faced her, letting his hair fall across his face. “Hey.” It came out sounding kinda choked. He’d been looking for her for a week, but he’d never really gotten around to figuring out what he’d say if he found her.

She was standing less than five yards away from him, feet planted shoulder width apart, the gun dangling loosely in her right hand. “How did you?” The question trailed off as she swallowed hard, her blue eyes wet and shining.

He shrugged and looked at the ground. “Rick told me what happened. Said he left you a few miles north of the prison. I figured you might stay close.”

She nodded, her lips pressed together in that tight smile she always had when she was trying not to cry. “You’ve been looking for me?”

“Weren’t nothing, really.” He looked up at her from the corner of his eye. “Just wanted to see that you’re ok.”

She smiled for real this time, with teeth and everything, her eyes crinkling at the corners as she shoved the gun into her waistband and rushed forward, throwing her arms over his shoulders. At first he didn’t know what to do and just stood there with his hands limp at his sides. Wasn’t she supposed to be mad at him for watching her?

When she didn’t let go, he finally got his shit together and wrapped his arms around her waist. They stayed like that for a while, her face pressed against his neck and his chin resting on her shoulder. The relief that he’d actually found her washed over him and he felt his eyes start to well up too, only letting go of her to wipe the tears away before she saw him crying.

“I thought I might never see you again,” she said, her breath warm on the side of his neck.

All he could do was nod. If he said anything she’d hear that choked sound in his voice again. She sniffed once and pulled back. His arms fell back to his sides and his chin trembled as he looked at her.

“Want to come in?” she asked, gesturing toward the cabin. “It’s not much, but I’ve been trying to make something of it.”

He pressed his lips together and nodded once, bending down to get his crossbow as he followed her toward the house.

The sagging porch steps groaned under his weight as he followed Carol to the door. The place was lighter inside than he’d expected.

“It’s the window in the loft,” she said. She had a way of doing that, guessing what he was thinking even if he hadn’t said anything.

“Huh?” There was no reason to let her know she’d guessed right.

She gave him one of those pursed lips looks like she knew she was right anyway. “The light. There’s a sleeping loft upstairs with a west-facing window. It’s got a good view of the creek and lets in the light.”

He nodded and leaned the crossbow against the wall by the door. “S’a good place.”

A shadow passed behind her eyes. “So Rick told you everything?”

He nodded and turned away from her, pretending to check out the wood-burning fireplace at the other end of the small living room.

“Are Lizzie and Mika still alive?” she asked, her voice tight and small.

“Yeah. They’re alright.”

Her words came out like a sigh, “Thank God. What about everybody else? Glenn? Hershel?”

He turned around and fiddled with the snaps on his vest. “Glenn’s getting better. We found some meds at the vet clinic. Hershel never got sick.”

She crossed her arms over her stomach and pulled at her bottom lip. “So Karen and David might’ve made it,” she said, more to herself than to him.

He winced and shook his head. “Don’t think so. We lost seven more before we made it back with the meds.”

She took a deep breath and pressed her hands to the top of her thighs, looking around the tiny kitchen behind her. “Want something to drink?” The counter was lined with water bottles, but she reached up and opened a cupboard, pulling down a half-full bottle of Crown Royal. “I found this here. It was the only thing left. I’ve been waiting for a good time to get really drunk. What do you think?”

“Pfft. Won’t take all that to get you drunk.”

“Even better,” she said, tipping the bottle back and taking a sip before holding it out to him.

He took it from her and put it to his lips. The liquid burned down his throat and he coughed against the back of his hand. It’d been a long time since he’d had a real drink.

She laughed and gestured toward the stairs at the end of the room that led to the open loft. “Come check out the view?”

He tucked the bottle into his waistband and slung the crossbow over his shoulder. He’d learned to keep it within arm’s reach no matter what. The steps were so steep they were closer to a ladder than an actual set of stairs and he kept his head down as they climbed. The last thing he needed was for her to catch him looking at her ass.

The loft was only about six by six, with a peaked ceiling so he had to stoop as he followed her to the window. She knelt down in front of it like an altar and folded her hands in her lap. He offered her the bottle again but she just shook her head, so he took another drink.

“Sometimes I just want to forget everything that’s happened,” she whispered, her eyes fixed on the creek that bordered the back yard, its waters glinting like gold in the afternoon sun.

“S’that really what you want?” he asked, picking at the label on the whiskey bottle.  
She turned to him and shook her head back and forth quickly. “I don’t know what I want. I don’t know if I want anything anymore. Sometimes it feels like nothing matters anyway.”

He reached out to her without thinking and let his hand rest on her shoulder. “It does matter,” he said. “We matter.”

She looked down at his hand and then up to his face, her eyes searching. He dropped his hand and went back to picking at the label. “We just gotta keep tryin’.”

“I am trying,” she said, looking back out the window.

“Good.” His voice sounded harder than he meant it to, but he just couldn’t take the idea of her giving up, not after everything they’d been through.

She sighed and slid her hand to the side. At first he thought she was reaching for the bottle again, and he moved it toward her, but she let her hand rest on his leg instead, squeezing just above his knee.

That twitch flickered in his groin again and he tried to focus on the trees beyond the creek to keep from thinking about it. He knew his face was getting red but there was nothing he could do about it. Maybe she’d think it was just the alcohol. He took another drink just to be on the safe side. He could feel her looking at him and tried hide behind his hair again. When he finally worked up the courage to meet her eyes, they had that familiar sparkle in them.

“It’s pretty romantic.” She tipped her head toward the scene outside and pursed her lips.

He dipped his head and bit his cheek. What the hell was he supposed to do now? He’d really fucked up the last time she said that and he’d been pissed at himself about it for months. But now that he had another chance he still didn’t have a damn thing to say. All he knew was there was no damn way he was gonna tell her to stop like he did last time. That move had gotten him nowhere fast. The only thing he could think of was her words from that night on the bus.

He was still looking at the floor when he mumbled, “Wanna screw around?”

She laughed out loud once and then clapped her hand over her mouth. Shit, of course he’d managed to fuck it up again. Real fuckin’ smooth. He moved to stand up, because leaving seemed like the only good option, but forgot about the low ceiling and banged his head on the wood before she grabbed his hands and pulled him back down to the floor.

The spot on his head was throbbing as he dropped onto his ass with a thud. Carol leaned forward and carefully parted his hair over the spot. Her fingers were cool as she grazed the tender area, but he flinched anyway.

“It’s just a bump. I think you’ll survive,” she said, smirking. “Were you gonna leave before I could answer your question?”

He shook his head, wishing he could take back the whole damn thing. She was just fucking with him, same as she’d done back at the bus that night. He’d never really had a chance with her.

“Yes,” she said.

When he looked up that spark was in her eyes again. Before he could even think about answering, she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his. The kiss was all he needed to finally believe that she wasn’t just messing around with him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and they both pulled up to their knees, their bodies pressed together as the kiss deepened.

When he slipped his tongue into her mouth, she moaned and this time there was more than a flicker in his crotch. He let one arm snake up to the back of her neck and fanned his fingers through her hair, squeezing into a fist when she moaned again and tilting her head back so he could lick down to the hollow between her collar bones. She shivered under his touch and he sat back again.

“You cold?” he asked.

“No.” Her cheeks were flushed and he was glad to see that he could actually make her blush when he wanted to. She reached out again and slid her hands under his vest, pressing her palms to his chest before tugging the vest from his shoulders and going to work on the buttons of his shirt.

He did the same for her, helping her out of her jacket and pulling her shirt over her head between kisses. Her skin was pale and smooth and when he ran his tongue down her neck to the spot where the white lace of her bra pressed against the tops of her breasts she let him tip her back so he was on his hands and knees, hovering over her.

She arched her back so he could slide his hands under her and unhook her bra while she reached down between them to unzip his fly. He was so hard now that when she slid her hand against him, he let his forehead fall against her chest and groaned. God, he’d wanted this for so long. Now that it was finally happening, he didn’t know how much longer he could wait.

He pressed himself up with his left arm and used his right hand to unfasten her pants, slipping his hand down the front of her panties. She was warm and wet and when she moaned his name as he let two fingers slip inside her, he just about lost it right there.

“Daryl,” she whispered again as he worked his fingers in and out of her, her hips lifting in response to every movement. “Please. I need it. Please.”

That was all it took. He sat back and pulled her pants off the rest of the way, but he didn’t have time to get his own past his knees. He needed to be inside her now. He grabbed her hips and pulled her forward so he could sink into her. She gasped and pressed her fingernails into his shoulders.

They were moving together now and for the first time in over a year he wasn’t thinking about anything but her. Not surviving, not walkers, not the group, nothing but her and the feeling of her body against his. She was running her hands up and down his arms with her eyes closed and he knew she wasn’t thinking about anything either. It was exactly what he’d always wanted to do for her.

He sped up his thrusts and her eyes squeezed even tighter until her legs stiffened and she called his name again. Feeling her tighten around him pushed him over the edge and he growled as the tension that had been building in his groin uncoiled and released into her.

For a few seconds, they lay there gasping and then she opened her eyes and smiled up at him. It was almost too much to take, her smiling at him like that while he was still inside her. All he could do was lean forward and touch his forehead to her shoulder. She sighed and wrapped her arms around him, stroking his hair as they both caught their breath.


	2. Two

The light in the loft began to take on an orange hue as the sun dipped behind the trees beyond the creek. They hadn’t said more than two words to each other since they’d finished and he was grateful for that. This was a new experience for him- the after. Almost every other time he’d been with a woman before the turn it had been rushed and impersonal. A quick fuck in the backseat of Merle’s old firebird to finish off a night at the bar or an uncomfortable hand job from one of the anonymous chicks that his brother always had around. He was never sure what was in it for them, but it made it easy to walk away afterwards. He didn’t mean anything to them. No expectations to live up to.

This was different. He’d never been with anybody like Carol before. He fiddled with an unlit cigarette, spinning it between his thumb and index finger and picking at the filter as he squinted down at the creek below.

“You can light that if you want,” she offered. “I don’t mind.”

“Naw, ‘s alright.” He tucked the cigarette back in the pack and started messing with the cellophane instead.

“Ok.” The corners of her eyes crinkled when she smiled but there was still a trace of the sadness that he’d noticed earlier.

He started to wonder if he’d fucked up. “That wasn’t the reason I came here,” he started, “Uhm, I mean, it’s not the reason I was out lookin’ for ya.”

She reached out to tuck a piece of hair behind his ear. “I’m glad you came.”

He pulled in his lower lip and dipped his head, giving her a half smile as he looked up through a fringe of hair. “Was gettin’ worried I wouldn’t find ya there for a while.”

She sighed and picked at a loose thread on the hem of her blouse. “I’m sorry I couldn’t say goodbye. I didn’t know. When I went out with Rick. He didn’t tell me what he was going to do.”

“Yeah.” His chest burned every time he thought about Rick leaving her out there alone. It wasn’t that she couldn’t take care of herself. But she shouldn’t have to. It wasn’t right treating her like that.

“I’ve thought about going back almost every day,” she continued quietly, her fingers laced together in her lap, “Maybe ask the Council to let me stay. Put it to a vote or something.”

He sat up a little straighter at that. It could work. Rick didn’t have the right to just make the decision for everybody. “You should. Come back with me now.” He reached for his crossbow and made a move toward the stairs. “If we take your car we can be back there in an hour. Call a special meeting and let the group decide.” His mind was already racing with ideas of what he could say to convince them to let her stay. They might have to make a compromise. Maybe they could clear another cell block and stay there together for a while. Long enough for the group to start to trust her again.

When she laid a small hand on his forearm he knew it wasn’t gonna happen. It was nothin’ but a stupid fantasy anyway. “I can’t do that,” she said, her voice almost a whisper. “Tyreese could never forgive me.” She shook her head. “Hell, I can’t even forgive me. How could I ask anyone else to?”

“I can handle Tyreese,” he growled. “Nobody’s gonna touch you.”

She pressed her lips into a sad smile. “It’s not just that…” she trailed off, her eyes straying to the golden sunset outside. “I don’t think it would be good for me. To be around people right now. I think I need to be alone for a while.”

He bit the inside of his cheek and took a minute to let her words sink in. She wanted to be alone. No. She hadn’t said that. Not really. She said she needed to be alone. He could understand that. Sometimes there were so many people hangin’ around at the prison he couldn’t hear his own thoughts runnin’ through his head. He’d get to point where he just had to get out to the woods. It was either that or he’d end up beatin’ the hell out of somebody for just lookin’ at him sideways. Start actin’ like Merle. Or worse, his old man.

Still, the thought of going back to the prison and leaving her out here alone put a sick feeling in his gut. She was tough and she had a good place but nothin’ was guaranteed anymore. They’d seen it at the farm. They were never safe.

“I… I could…” the heat flooded his cheeks before he could even get the damn sentence out. “Stay here for a bit. If you want. Just to help keep watch or whatever you need.”

This time a real smile spread across her face, a good one with teeth and all. It was one of those smiles that he could live on for a week, just playing it over and over in his head on a loop. The only thing better was makin’ her laugh out loud.

“Daryl.” She leaned forward and laid a hand on his knee, still smiling. “Thank you. Really. Thank you. But I think it would just make things more complicated. I’ll be alright.”

“Hhmph.” His ears burned from embarrassment but she patted his leg reassuringly and he did his best to return her smile. There was no point in arguing with her now. She’d already made up her mind. Anyway the last thing she needed was another asshole telling her what’s best for her.

They climbed down from the loft together and he stopped at the front door, his hands shoved deep in his pockets, feeling like a teenaged kid on a first date. After everything they’d just done a goodbye kiss should be easy. Carol seemed to sense his discomfort and reached past him to pull her jacket down from the hook by the door.

“I’ll give you a ride back to your bike.”

“Naw. I’m good.” It had taken him a couple hours to find the place crisscrossing through the woods, but they weren’t all that far from the highway. If he followed the road he could make it back to his bike in less than a half an hour.

“You sure?” She frowned, hesitating with the jacket still clutched in one hand.

“Yep.” He nodded and reached behind him for the door handle. “It was good to see you.”

“Really good.” She chuckled and his cheeks flushed again. “Will you stop by again sometime?”

He looked at his feet and shuffled nervously. “Do you want me to?”

She stretched up to her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her cool lips against his ear, which only made it burn hotter.

“Yes,” she whispered.

He gave her a quick peck on the cheek in return and slipped out the door into the warm evening air, hitching his crossbow higher on his shoulder as he made his way down the dirt driveway. There had to be some way to fix all of this for her. He just hoped she’d stay safe until he could figure it out.

#

His headlight glinted off the chain link as the bike roared up to the prison and the lower gate slid open, giving him just enough room to slip through without creating an opportunity for the walkers that gathered there. He nodded to Sasha as he passed but she wasn’t looking. She already had her shoulder into the gate, pushing it shut with a loud clang behind him.

That girl was determined as fuck. Wouldn’t even talk about letting somebody else take her watch shifts while she recovered. Now that he’d found Carol he should stay around for a few days, help out more. Everybody was worn out. It wasn’t right for him to spend so much time away. But he’d had to go lookin’ for her. If he’d waited he might’ve lost her forever.

He followed the dirt path to the upper gate and killed the engine, walking the bike over to the parking area on the west side of the building so he wouldn’t draw too much attention. The kickstand flipped down easily under his boot heel and he let the bike rest, swinging his other leg over the seat in one fluid motion. Sounds of clinking plates and glasses met him as he opened the door. Almost everybody was down in A Block for dinner, making it easy to slip up to his cell without having to make small talk.

He strode down the empty corridor quickly. He needed to be alone to think on this for a while. Carol didn’t want him to ask Rick to let her come back but it felt like the only way. These people were their family now. The only people left on earth who actually gave a fuck about them. Shit, they were some of the only people who had ever cared about him. Still, he’d walk away from them if he had to. He’d do it for her. Only she didn’t want that neither.

The cell door closed smoothly behind him and he pulled the threadbare curtain shut, dropping his pack and crossbow on the concrete floor as he collapsed onto his bunk with a groan. The walk back to his bike had taken longer than he thought. He’d had to take down at least fifteen walkers before he even made it to the road and his muscles ached from the effort. He’d used his knife on all of them. He couldn’t afford to lose any arrows in the darkening woods if he missed. And firing the gun was out of the question. The number of walkers wandering through that section of woods already made him uneasy and he wasn’t about to draw more in with a gunshot.

He sat up and pulled the rag out of his back pocket, dousing it with water and running it up and down his forearms until the film of blackened blood that stretched all the way to his elbows was erased. He tossed the rag in the corner and lay back again, tucking one arm behind his head. When he closed his eyes all he could see was her face.

Those sky blue eyes pleading with him as she begged him to fuck her. Jesus. It didn’t seem real. To go from thinking he might never see her again to finding her and then to actually get to be with her like that. Just wasn’t the kind of thing that he was used to. He wondered briefly if he’d taken advantage. If he’d used her surprise at seeing someone from their group to get what he’d been wanting since they’d been camped out at the quarry. But then, she’d been the one that brought up the whole romantic thing, so maybe she really wanted it as bad as he did.

The events of the afternoon flashed behind his eyelids as he lay there, playing them over and over on a loop. The warmth of her breath against his neck when she moaned his name. The way her nails bit into his shoulders as she clenched around him. The feeling of her hard nipples pressed against his chest when he came in her. Fuck he hadn’t even asked her if that was ok. What the hell was he thinking? He’d do it better next time if he got the chance. Ask for permission instead of just doing whatever he wanted like an ignorant hillbilly.

His hand drifted to the bump on the top of his head where he’d hit the rafters. His callouses snagged on his hair, a pitiful imitation of the way her soft fingers had trailed over the spot, tentative and careful. She’d always touched him like that. Like she was afraid he’d snap at her if she lingered too long. He dropped his hand to cover his face, embarrassed even in an empty room when he thought about the way he’d treated her in the past. It was a goddamn miracle that she even still talked to him. As his fingers trailed over his lips he remembered the way she’d kissed him, hungry and desperate. Her scent still lingered on him and he breathed in slowly, imagining how she’d taste.

He forced himself to open his eyes. He needed to focus. To puzzle out a way to fix this whole fucked up situation. And he wasn’t gonna get it done by laying around here daydreaming. But even with his eyes wide open the images kept coming. His dick was already straining against the zipper of his jeans and he reached down to unfasten them, giving himself more room.

He began to stroke himself absently, remembering how wet she’d been when he’d slid into her. Had that really been on account of him? He adjusted his grip on himself and began to make longer, more deliberate strokes, slipping into the comfortable well-worn images of her that he’d been using for so long. Her breasts visible through the neck of her t-shirt when she bent to fill a tub of water, the feeling of her open thighs pressed against him when she rode on the back of his bike, her absently sucking a bit of blood from her finger when she accidentally pricked herself while patching clothes. He almost laughed out loud when he realized he was doing it. It was like his brain couldn’t process the new material so it was going back to the familiar.

He’d always settled for those little glimpses, never imagining that he could actually be with her that way. But it had really happened. He could still feel the warmth of her against his skin. Nerves tingling with anticipation as he hovered over her. The memory of her lying underneath him, naked and begging for him to be inside of her was too much. He grunted as he came, barely able to lift his shirt out of the way in time as he shot his load all over his stomach.

“Fuck,” he groaned, letting his head fall back against his pillow. The euphoria pulsed through his veins for just a few seconds before the guilt set in. Here he was, lounging in bed surrounded by the safety of walls and fences, jerking off like a damn kid while she was out there. Alone. Who knew what would happen if a herd came through? Or worse, if other people found her. Some group that maybe wasn’t as friendly as they were.

He grabbed a spare sock from the floor and used it to mop up his stomach. His cheeks burned while he fastened his pants and he tried to occupy his mind by coming up with a way to convince the group to bring her back. There had to be some way to make it work. If not, he’d go back to her cabin and insist on staying. Shit, even if he had to sleep on the porch or up in a tree at least he’d be able to keep her safe. Not leaving her out there to fend for herself while he sat in a secured prison like a little bitch.

The hard clack of Rick’s boots against the concrete just about made him jump out of his skin and he barely managed to shove the blanket over his crotch before the other man was opening the door and pushing through the curtain.

“Heard you were back.” Rick started talking before he even made it all the way into the cell.

“Don’t anyone fuckin’ knock around here?” Daryl spat out, adjusting the wadded up blanket to cover his fading erection.

“Oh.” Rick stopped in his tracks and glanced around the room quickly, his initial surprise fading into something closer to amusement when he realized Daryl was alone. “Er, sorry.” He grimaced and seemed to find something interesting on the ceiling of the cell, keeping his eyes trained there. “Just thought I’d check to see how you did.”

“Did fine.” Daryl huffed. “Got a few squirrels but I ran into a herd on my way back an’ lost ‘em.”

“A herd?” The fear in Rick’s voice made Daryl regret the lie instantly. They’d been having trouble with walkers stacking up on the fences lately so it wasn’t the best choice for an excuse.

“Nothin’ the fences can’t handle. Jus’ enough that I wasn’t gonna go back for some skinny ass squirrels.”

Rick nodded and started to back out of the cell. Probably on his way to make a plan for reinforcing the fence. “Alright then. Goodnight.”

“Hey Rick?” Daryl couldn’t’ stop himself before the words came pouring out. “We still need to talk, ya know.”

“About what?”

“Carol.”

Rick’s eyes widened but then he just shook his head and looked at the ground. “It had to be done. There was no helping it.”

“No it didn’t.” Daryl bit out the words. “The council could have voted on it.”

Rick just kept shaking his head back and forth like he was trying to convince himself as much as Daryl. “It wouldn’t have worked. Even if they voted to let her stay. People wouldn’t trust her anymore. Tyreese wouldn’t trust her. I can’t trust her.”

Daryl had to grip the edge of the bunk to keep himself from coming at Rick. “That’s bullshit. She ain’t a murderer. Not anymore than you or me. She was tryin’ to do right by the group.”

Rick nodded slowly. “I believe that. But what she did was wrong. There’s no changing that.”

Daryl felt all the air rush out of him at the finality in Rick’s voice. She was right. Course she was. Comin’ back to the prison was never an option. All he could do now was figure out a way to go with her. Wherever she ended up.

“We can talk more later.”

Daryl nodded but he knew Rick had no intentions of continuing the conversation. He was probably hoping Daryl would just let it go. The sheriff left the cell, pulling the door shut quietly behind him and letting the curtain drop, leaving Daryl alone again.


	3. Three

Daryl’s boot heels scuffed against the porch as he waited for her to answer his knock. It was good that she took a minute to come to the door. Even if she recognized the motorcycle it was smart of her to check first. When the door swung wide and she stood there with one of those bright as fuck smiles he wondered how he’d managed to wait a whole week before coming back to see her.

“Hi Pookie.”

“Stop.”

She moved aside so he could squeeze past her and drop his bag on the butcher-block counter. “Got some stuff for ya.” He pulled out the venison first, carefully wrapped in waxed paper and tied with a string.

“You got a deer?” she asked, unwrapping the package to look inside.

“Lucky shot on a quick hunt yesterday. Thought maybe we could cook some up tonight.” The flush started creepin’ up his neck as soon as he got the words out. Maybe she was still wantin’ to be left alone and here he was showing up with dinner plans like they had a date or some shit.

“That sounds nice.” She ran a hand along his shoulders, goose bumps trailing behind her fingers.

“Got you some fresh tomatoes and corn too,” he continued, “few cans of beans and some peaches.” He was still unloading the bag when he noticed she’d pulled away and had her arms crossed over her chest, staring at the floor.

“I can’t take their food Daryl,” she said quietly.

“Ain’t their food,” he spat out. “More yours ‘n anybody’s. You planted those goddamn tomatoes for Christ’s sake. Just because Rick said you had to go don’t mean this stuff isn’t still yours. You earned your place.”

She pressed her lips together and gave him one of those looks that said he was winnin’ the argument so he kept quiet while he unpacked the rest of the food.

“You didn’t have to do all this. I’m alright.” She picked up a tomato and turned it over in her hands, her fingers gliding over the ripe fruit.

“Knew you would be,” he said, leaning back against the counter. “Still, a little extra food don’t hurt.” 

“That’s true.” She gave him a smile and lifted the tomato to her lips for a bite, the juice and seeds dribbling down her chin in a way that made his tongue flick across his lips unconsciously. “Mmmm. I missed these.”

“I can bring ya some starts if ya want,” he offered.

“Thanks but I wouldn’t have anywhere to keep them.” She wiped off the tomato juice with the back of her hand. “I’m leaving here in the next couple days.”

“Leavin’? Why?” He knew she wasn’t plannin’ to stay here for good; the place didn’t have near enough protection from walkers, but he hadn’t counted on her packin’ up and leavin’ before he’d worked out how he was gonna go with her.

“There’s another group nearby. About a mile and a half north of here, on the other side of the creek.” She gestured in that direction. “They’ve got a few RVs. I thought maybe they were just passing through but they’ve been there for a few days now. Looks like they might be planning to say.”

“Hhmph.” He hated the idea of her bein’ out here like this. Out where a herd of walkers was less of a threat than an unknown group of people. This wasn’t good news for the prison either. The last thing they needed was another group to be warring with and this location was way too close for comfort. Hell, half of their people were still sick. And half of ‘em couldn’t fight worth a damn to begin with. He sighed. “I’ll check it out. Rick’ll want to know about it.”

“They didn’t look like fighters. There were some old people, lots of women, a few kids. I’m just not in the mood to have neighbors so close, you know? Probably nothing to worry about.”

“Could be a problem though. Sounds like Woodbury.”

She nodded slowly. “You’re right.”

“Sides, you’re a woman.”

“And?”

“And you’re a hell of a lot tougher that most guys I’ve met so that don’t mean nothin’.”

Her brow furrowed slightly as she looked at the ground.

“Hey.” He brought one finger to her chin, tipping it up ‘til their eyes met. “You keep people safe. That’s what you do. Ain’t nothin’ to be ashamed of.”

The next thing he knew she was kissing him hard. Standing on her tiptoes with the front of his vest clutched in her fists, her tongue forcing his lips apart.

“Hey, hey.” He put his hands on her hips and pressed her back until her feet were flat on the floor again. “Why you doin’ this?”

“Doing what?” She looked at him coyly, reaching down and hooking her fingers under his belt and tugging him toward her.

He put one hand over both of hers, stilling her fingers. “You don’t have to.”

She dropped her hands to her sides and leaned her head back, eyes welling as she stared at the ceiling. “What else is left?”

“Whaddya mean?”

“It’s all gone now,” she continued, locking eyes with him. “Everything I had. Is gone. Sophia...” Her voice cracked as she said her daughter’s name and he reached for her but she pushed him away. “No. Please. She’s gone too. Along with everything else I’ve ever cared about in this world. Except for you. And I can’t believe that you’re still here because you’re good. God, sometimes I think nothing good can survive here but you do. Because you’re strong too. And I want to be like you. I want to be good and strong but I can’t do it. I’m always fucking it up.”

He stared at his feet. There was nothing he could say to make it better for her and he knew that. He’d been there before, feeling like he was the most worthless piece of shit on earth and it didn’t matter what anybody else said. When you believe it, you believe it and there’s not a soul in this world that can change that.

“You gotta keep trying.”

Her sharp laugh made the tears spill down her cheeks and she wiped them away with her sleeve. “What for?”

“For me.” A muscle in the corner of his eye twitched. It was a cheap shot but it was all he had. He knew her well enough to know that was the only thing that could bring her back. She had to be doing it for someone else.

She sniffed and wiped away a fresh set of tears. “I just want to forget.”

“I know. Come ‘ere.” This time she let him pull her into his chest and buried her face against him. Her narrow shoulders shook as she sobbed and he just squeezed her tighter, letting her tears soak his shirt and whispering soft words into her hair.  
They stayed like that until her sobs turned into shaky breaths. He just kept rubbing one hand up and down her spine, hoping he was making her feel better in some small way. Hell he’d stay there for days if that was what it took for her to get it all out. Finally she took a deep breath and looked up at him with red rimmed eyes.

“I’ll keep trying,” she said.

“That’s all I’m askin’.”


	4. Four

Beads of sweat clung to the ends of his hair, dropping into his eyes with every step. It was hot as hell and the steep ground made for tough walking. Staying on the open bank of the creek would have been easier and cooler too, but they couldn’t risk it. Not when this other group might be out scouting around.

“There’s some blackberry vines up ahead,” Carol took a drink from her water bottle and passed it over to him. “We can pick some on the way back. They’ll make a good sauce for the venison.”

“Mmmm hmm.”

She looked up at him, one hand shading her eyes. “You worried?”

He shrugged. “Naw. Probably fine. Just wanna see it, ya know? Maybe they’re ok. Could bring ‘em back to prison if they are. Could use some more hands.”

“Yeah.” She touched the knife at her hip, running her fingers absently across the handle.

He squinted at the ground. It was stupid to talk to her about the future of the prison like it mattered. She wasn’t ever coming back there. But maybe if these people moved in she’d think about staying at the cabin a while longer.

She’d said she wanted to be alone. He knew enough to respect that. But her being alone at that cabin was a whole hell of a lot better than being alone out on the road where anything could happen. “Where ya plannin’ to go?” he tried to sound casual.

“Maybe East? Thought something near the ocean could be easier to defend.”

“That’s far.”

“Yeah. Could be worth it though.” She looked up, her eyes twinkling. “I might find an abandoned resort. Spend the rest of my life sunbathing and drinking margaritas on the beach.”

“Psshh.” The image of her stretched out on one of those fancy beach chairs in a skimpy bathing suit flashed across his mind for a second before he pushed the thought away, focusing on the ground beneath his feet.

She laughed in that way she did when she knew she was getting him ruffled. He couldn’t keep the corner of his mouth from quirking up in response.

They walked for a ways without talking after that. As much as she liked to tease him they always seemed to fall back into comfortable silence. It was one of the things he loved about her. Most people couldn’t do it. They liked the sound of their own voices too much.

“It’s around this next bend.” She pointed down to where the creek curled itself around the opposite bank. “See? You can just see the RVs.”

His eyes followed in the direction of her finger and sure enough, the sun was reflecting off the white tops of a half dozen RVs. He and Carol both ducked down instinctively as they drew closer. They were well away from the bank but there was no way to tell who was keeping a lookout and where.

“There’s more now,” she said, keeping her voice low as they walked. “I only saw three RVs the last time I was here. Do you think they’re recruiting? Or maybe they were in a big convoy?”

“Dunno,” he said, ducking under branches that scraped at his arms and caught in his hair. “Could be scavenging ‘em too. Maybe planning to use ‘em for a fence. ‘S a good spot with the creek on one side an all.”

“Looks like they’re planning to stay,” she said flatly. “You think Rick will try to talk to them?”

“He ain’t been much for talkin’ lately,” he said. “Gonna hafta do somethin’ though.”

As they rounded the corner he held up a hand to signal her to stop. A couple of kids were playing around on the opposite bank; splashing each other and using little buckets to make sand castles.

“Fuckin’ jackasses,” he mumbled.

Carol stepped closer to him, her eyes soft as she watched the kids. “They’re just having fun. It’s nice they can still play.”

“Not them.” He frowned. “Their stupid ass parents. The creek’s low right now. See how far the mud comes up the bank?” He pointed toward the wide expanse of space between the water and the edge of the camp. “That’s how high the river was in winter. Remember all those walkers that would get stuck out in the mud at Hershel’s place? No telling what could be buried down there.”

She sucked in a quick breath, her hand flitting to her knife again. “You think?” Her brow was furrowed and he hated himself for bringing it up. The last thing she needed to be thinking about right now was kids getting killed. He knew she’d probably been thinking about Sophia more lately, after everything with Karen and David.

“Nah. ‘S probably fine.” He shrugged, hoping she’d let the thought go. “Gotta let ‘em play once in a while.” When her frown didn’t changed he pointed to the camp, trying to distract her. “How many cars you see? Rick’ll wanna know.”

Her focus shifted and the worried crease between her brows eased. There were eight vehicles that he could see. And something bigger parked at the northern end of the camp, painted a dark green. He stood up a little straighter, straining to get a better look. It couldn’t be what he thought.

He was just about to climb up the bank to get a better vantage point when Carol gasped and dug her fingers into his arm. He dropped into a crouch, pulling her down with him automatically, but she was struggling against him, her eyes wide with fear. His heartbeat thundered in his ears as he tried to find what she was looking at. “What?”

“Look.” She pointed a shaky finger at a truck that had just pulled up to the camp. A few guys were gathered around the bed of the pickup watching a woman jump down. She was agile even with her hands tied behind her back. The old man needed more help. Daryl’s heart stuttered as a tall man pulled himself out of the passenger side of the cab, a black patch covering one eye.

“The hell?” Daryl breathed as they marched Michonne and Hershel toward one of the RVs. He got up and raised his crossbow, setting his sight on the middle of the Governor’s forehead, but Carol’s hand on his arm stopped him before he could pull the trigger.

“No. They’ll kill them,” she whispered.

He let the crossbow drop a few inches. She was right. It was too risky. But the red hot rage that pounded between his temples made it hard to listen. This motherfucker. Who’d tried to make him fight his brother to the death. Who’d used Merle like an attack dog and then killed him in the end and left him to turn. He was still alive. His brother was dead and this son of a bitch was still alive and had taken their people.

“We gotta go,” he started to turn in the direction they’d come. “Gotta get Rick.”

Carol grabbed his shoulders and hauled him back down to the ground. “We can’t. That’s what he wants.” She stared at him, her bright blue eyes boring into his. “He’s always wanted a war with Rick. And now he has hostages. That’s not going to end well. We have to do this ourselves.”

“How?”

“We wait until dark and we go and get them out.”

“We’ll have to kill people,” he warned. “At least him.”

She shut her eyes and took a deep breath, pressing her lips together. “I know.”


	5. Five

The moonlight reflected off the blackened steel of Carol’s rifle as they waded across the creek. She held it over her head with both hands, keeping it well away from the water that swirled around her chest. The creek bed was muddy and sucked at Daryl’s boots. It was tough going, but they couldn’t risk leaving to find a better spot to cross.

His breath caught in his throat as she crawled up the muddy bank ahead of him, the thought of buried walkers flashing through his mind again. It wasn’t until she was safely on solid ground that he let himself breathe, hiking his crossbow up on his shoulder as he followed her into the woods at the northern edge of the Governor’s camp.

They crouched in the dense brush there, eyes straining in the dark as people milled around the haphazard arrangement of RVs and tents. There were more of ‘em than he’d realized from across the creek. Quite a few wannabe military assholes struttin’ around the place, dressed up in camo and shit. He wondered if they’d been the ones who brought the tank. A chill ran down his spine as he shifted, his socks squelching inside his boots. That thing could do a hell of a lot of damage to the prison. Even with the arsenal they’d built up they wouldn’t stand a chance.

“You should go on back,” he whispered. “Somebody’s gotta warn Rick if this doesn’t work.”

“Not a chance in hell.”

He couldn’t help but smile a little at that. He wasn’t lying when he told her she was tough. Course, tough was one thing, but this was a suicide mission. He never should have let her talk him into staying. Except that she was right. This was the way to get it done.

The camp was lit by a few small fires- burning low to keep from attracting walkers- and lookouts were posted on top of the taller RVs, including the one that held Michonne and Hershel.

“We can do it at the shift change.” She whispered, gesturing toward the men pacing on top of the campers. “Once everybody else is asleep.”

He nodded and settled down to wait, grimacing as he wiggled his toes against his wet socks, wishing he could ring them out. There wasn’t much that bothered him, but waterlogged boots were one thing he just couldn’t stand. Carol didn’t seem to have a problem with her wet clothes, sighing softly as she sat down next to him and pulled her knees to her chest.

“If things go bad…” she started.

“Stop.” He couldn’t talk about that. Couldn’t even think about it. He knew this was a risky plan. There was a good chance they’d get themselves killed. Hell, if it weren’t for the fact that he knew she’d never forgive him, he’d have probably thrown her over his shoulder and packed her back to her cabin just to keep her as far away from all this as he could.

“No, Daryl, I need to say this.” Her eyes were pleading, one hand resting lightly on his forearm. “If this doesn’t work,” she continued. “I want you to know that I’m glad we tried. That we’re trying.”

He focused on the ground, worrying his lower lip between his teeth.

“I’ve spent so much of my life being afraid,” she said, taking a deep breath. “I was afraid to leave Ed. And in the end I didn’t leave him. It was just dumb luck when he died.”

“You woulda,” he interjected.

She shook her head and drew another shaky breath. “I like to think so, but I don’t know.”

“You would’ve,” he repeated, meeting her eyes to show her he really did believe it.

“And when we lost Sophia I was afraid to go out looking for her,” she continued. “God, I was so scared that I’d find her as one of those things. I didn’t think I could handle it. But maybe if I would have tried, maybe I could have found her before…”

“Cain’t think like that.”

“Can’t help it.” She gave him a wry smile. “But what I’m really trying to say here is that it’s worth it. No matter what happens tonight, it’s worth it because I’m not letting fear control me anymore. I’m trying. And trying is living. Without that we might as well be dead already.”

He nodded slowly, letting her words sink in.

“You want to know something else I was afraid of?” she asked.

When he looked up her eyes were crinkled at the edges and she didn’t look as sad as he expected. “Hmm?”

“I was afraid to tell you how I feel about you.” Her lips pressed together in a tight smile. “And when Rick sent me away that was the only real regret I had. That I’d missed my chance to tell you the truth. But then you found me.” She paused and met his eyes shyly. “You always find me. And I got a second chance to tell you that I love you.”

“Love you too.” He responded without even thinking. Of course he loved her. There was never a question about that. And as good as exchanging those words made him feel, part of him wished they hadn’t. It felt like a goodbye.

She shifted closer and rested her head against his chest, sighing softly when he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “We’re gonna make it,” he whispered in her ear. “Come too far not to.”


	6. Six

They’d been waiting for a few hours when the men on top of the RVs finally started to stir. Carol stood up quickly and offered Daryl a hand. His knees cracked as he got to his feet and followed her to the edge of the clearing. The RV that held Michonne and Hershel was backed up to the creek, which worked in their favor. The lookout wasn’t expecting anybody- dead or otherwise- to come from that direction.

They kept their heads low and hurried to the back corner of the RV, crouching there as they waited for the new lookout to show up for his shift. It wasn’t more than five minutes before he appeared, only getting as far as the first rung of the ladder before Daryl grabbed him, pressing one hand over his mouth and the tip of his knife to the man’s neck. “Make one sound and I slit your throat,” he whispered.

The man nodded, his eyes wide with fear.

“Get him down here,” Daryl instructed, slowly pulling his hand away from the man’s mouth. “Tell him you need a hand.”

“Hey, Gil, can you give me a hand down here?” The man’s voice came out steady and even.

“Yeah, hold on,” Gil answered.

The seconds ticked by as they waited for him to climb down. He’d just hopped to the ground when Carol slammed the butt of her rifle into his temple. Gil’s knees buckled as he crumpled to the ground where Carol made quick work of taking his weapons.

“Thanks for the help,” Daryl mumbled to his prisoner before pistol whipping him and letting him drop to the ground.

Carol had already put on Gil’s hat and jacket and climbed to the top of the vehicle. They’d agreed that she would stay there to keep the Governor’s group from getting suspicious. He had a feeling she’d agreed to the role so easily partly because she couldn’t stand the idea of killing more people. Even assholes like the Governor. She’d been the one who insisted they could knock the guys out instead of slitting their throats like he’d wanted to.

Daryl used the men’s shoelaces to tie their hands and crept to the window where the dim light from an oil lamp was shining. Staying quiet and low, he cast a glance back to the two men on the ground. He’d feel better if they’d just killed them but he was hoping to get their friends out before those fuckers had time to wake up anyway.

Keeping his back pressed tight against the trailer, he craned his neck to peer through the corner of the window. Michonne and Hershel were huddled together on a small bench on the opposite wall with their hands bound, the rope knotted around the base of a built in table. There was a stocky guy in the passenger side captain’s chair up front, his automatic rifle resting loosely across his lap and his head tipped back like he was close to dozing off. Michonne was giving him the side eye and working her wrists back and forth in the restraints.

He’d barely raised a finger to tap on the window when Carol’s rough whisper almost made him jump out of his skin. “Incoming.”

The trailer door opened with a clang just as Daryl ducked away from the window. His heart thundered in his chest. All of a sudden Carol’s position on the roof seemed way too exposed. He’d thought it would be a good way to keep her out of any hand-to-hand combat but now it just felt crazy. If things went bad she’d be up there with a target on her back and no way to escape.

“Ya’ll better get some sleep,” the Governor drawled, swinging the door shut behind him. “Big day tomorrow.”

Daryl crept back to the window just in time to see the guard straightening up in his seat, trying to look alert as the Governor strolled past him.

“You first,” Michonne said. “We’ll keep watch.”

The Governor gave a barking laugh. “I’m gonna miss these talks Michonne. I have a feeling we won’t be seeing much of each other after all this.”

“I have that same feeling,” Michonne deadpanned. “It’ll be hard for us to chat after I kill you.”

“There’s still time to work this out,” Hershel said. “We can take your people in. We have crops, good water, fences, walls. There haven’t been any conflicts since the people from Woodbury moved in. It can work.”

Daryl had to give it to the old man. He really did try to practice what he preached. Love and forgiveness and all that shit.

“Travis, why don’t you take a break?” The Governor patted the guard on the shoulder. “Give us a few minutes to talk.”

Travis didn’t argue, just got up, slung his gun over his shoulder, and walked out. Daryl tensed to grab him as soon as he rounded the corner of the RV, but the other man stopped short, unzipping his pants to take a piss. Daryl took a cautious step forward, pulling his pistol from his waistband by the barrel. He’d intended to clock the guy before he even knew what hit him, but his socks were still soaked and made a loud squelching sound when he moved. Travis whirled around just as Daryl was swinging the butt of the pistol down, so instead of hitting the man squarely in the back of the head, it glanced off his shoulder.

Travis’s eyes blew wide as he threw his arms up to block the next blow. Daryl was vaguely aware that he was getting covered in piss as he wrestled Travis to the ground, doing his best to keep a hand over the other man’s mouth so he couldn’t yell for help.

“God dammit,” he grunted as Travis’s hands clawed at his throat. It took all of his strength to roll the man onto his back and straddle him, pinning his arms to the ground with his knees. He fumbled for his gun but his fingers kept getting tangled in the long grass. Hell, even a rock would work to knock the guy out, but there was nothing within reach. His knife was right there on his hip, but he’d promised Carol he’d try not to kill anyone. Finally, he spotted the gun resting near Travis’s knee. He’d just started to reach back for it when a low groan and movement caught his attention.

The guy he’d pistol whipped earlier was shifting around, pulling weakly at the ties around his wrists. He hadn’t seemed to notice the fight going on just ten feet away and Daryl couldn’t afford to wait until he came to his senses.

“Fuck this,” he muttered, pulling his knife from his belt and driving it up into the soft spot under the Travis’s jaw, keeping his other hand in place to muffle the scream as it faded to a gurgle.

It only took a few seconds for the tension to leave Travis’s body, his blood hot and wet as it flowed over Daryl’s hands. He eased away from the body, grabbed his gun from the spot where it had fallen and rushed over to the man who was still waking up, cracking him over the head again. This guy was gonna have one hell of a headache when he woke up but at least he’d be alive.

“You ok?” Carol whispered from her post on the RV.

“Yeah,” he grunted, wiping the sticky blood on his pants. “Goin’ in now.”

“Be careful.”

Daryl picked up his crossbow where he’d dropped it before his wrestling match with Travis. If only the window was open a crack he could shoot the motherfucker from right there and be done with it. But it wasn’t. And he couldn’t risk trying to open it. If the Governor heard him before he could get off a clean shot, he’d use Michonne or Hershel to gain an advantage. No, the only way to do it was to walk right in the front door.

The Governor didn’t even look up when Daryl pulled the door open. He must have assumed it was Travis coming back, but just as Daryl’s finger twitched toward the trigger, Michonne and Hershel both saw him, their eyes widening in surprise and the Governor noticed it in time to duck and turn, the arrow lodging in the fake wood paneling behind him with a sharp thwack.

That was it. There was no time to reload. No second chance. A gunshot would bring everybody in the camp running, so he did the only thing he could and braced the crossbow across his chest, running at the Governor and knocking him off his feet as Daryl drew his knife.

They wrestled on the floor for a few seconds, the tight space and the bow between them making it impossible for Daryl to get enough leverage. He gasped when the Governor brought a knee up hard into his balls, his eyes watering as pain rocketed through his gut. He tried to stay focused, but the Governor used the momentary distraction to get ahold of Daryl’s wrist, bashing his arm against one of the kitchen cabinets until his knife clattered to the linoleum.

With a strangled cry, the Governor shoved the crossbow hard against Daryl’s chest, pushing himself backwards down the tiny hallway. They both scrambled to their feet and the Governor reached for the gun at his hip. Before he could pull it from its holster, Daryl ran at him again, lowering his shoulder to hit the other man in the chest. They landed on the bed in the back of the RV, both fighting hard to get the upper hand.

Somehow Daryl got an arm around the Governor’s neck and brought his other arm up to keep him in the choke hold. They were both breathing heavy and it took everything he had to drag him off the bed and start to move back down the hallway toward the spot where he dropped his knife. He could hear Michonne and Hershel kicking the table that they were tied to, but he couldn’t afford to wait for them to get loose. All it would take is for the Governor to get out one good scream and they’d be as good as dead.

They’d barely made it two feet when the Governor kicked his legs out, putting enough space between their bodies for him to plant an elbow in Daryl’s stomach. He lost his grip on the other man’s neck and stumbled backwards toward the bed again. It was enough time for the Governor to draw his gun, aiming it at Daryl’s head with a breathless sneer.

Daryl’s arms flew up automatically to cover his face but didn’t hear the shot. When he opened his eyes, the Governor was still standing there, but the sneer had morphed into a look of surprise and confusion. A deep red line had opened along his throat and blood pulsed from the wound, soaking the front of his shirt. The man blinked twice before his knees buckled and he dropped to the ground. Carol stood in the space where he’d just been, gripping her knife so hard her knuckles had turned white. She stared at Daryl, her wide blue eyes stark against her pale skin.

He’d never seen anything so goddamn beautiful in his whole life.

She rushed to him, her delicate fingers shaking as they traced the line of his jaw. “Are you ok?” she asked. “Did you get hurt?”

“Nah, ‘m good.” He shook his head quickly. “We gotta get out of here.”

She nodded and turned back down the hall, stopping for just a second to cut the ropes that still held Michonne and Hershel. They helped Hershel to his feet and waited as Michonne moved to the back of the RV, pulling her katana from one of the overhead cabinets and driving it through the Governor’s good eye.

It took all three of them to get Hershel back across the stream, but they’d decided it was their best chance to make sure they wouldn’t be followed when the group found the bodies.

After a quick stop back at Carol’s cabin, they all piled in her station wagon and headed back toward the prison. Michonne drove and Carol and Daryl sat side by side in the back seat. Daryl laced his fingers through hers, rubbing his thumb in small circles against the prominent bones in her wrist.

He leaned over and whispered in her ear. “Good lookin’ out. I owe ya one.”

Her eyes crinkled at the corners and she turned to press her lips to his ear in return. “I’m sure you’ll find a way to make it up to me.”


	7. Seven

There was a tight feeling in Daryl’s stomach that only got worse the closer they got to the prison. The same feeling was reflected back at him when he met Carol’s eyes. The relief at having actually escaped the Governor’s camp without losing anybody had ebbed away as they drove; their smiles slowly replaced by clenched jaws and worried glances.

It was impossible for Daryl to guess how Rick would react when he saw Carol. He should fall down on his knees and be grateful. Should beg her forgiveness for what he’d done. Carol had saved them from another fight with the Governor. A fight that they would have lost. Daryl knew that without a doubt. The Governor would have rolled up to their gates with two hostages and a fucking tank. It would have been over before it even started.

He’d thought about telling Michonne to stop the car and let them out more than once. It wasn’t right to make Carol deal with Rick when she’d made it clear that was the last thing she wanted to do. In the end it was guilt that made him stay in the car. He couldn’t leave before making sure the Governor’s people wouldn’t still attack. Even if Rick was being a prick, the people at the prison were still his family.

Carol’s fingers tightened on his knee as they drove through the gates and he covered her hand with his own, doing his best to let her know that he was with her. No matter what. She squared her shoulders and pressed her lips together as the car slowed.

“Daddy?!” Maggie was there first, wrenching the passenger door open before they’d even come to a full stop and throwing her arms around Hershel’s neck. Beth and Glenn weren’t far behind.

“Where were you guys? We’ve been looking for you all night.” Glenn asked, scanning the inside of the car before his eyes stopped on the back seat. “Carol?” he gasped. “How?”

Carol shook her head and laughed even though her eyes were glassy with tears when Beth pulled her out of the backseat and into a hug.  
“The Governor took us,” Michonne explained. “He was with a new group. They wanted to take the prison. He was going to use us as hostages, but Daryl and Carol saved us.”

“We’ve gotta tell Rick. He’s getting the next search party ready to go.” Glenn started back toward the prison. “Did you kill them all?”

“Nah.” Daryl shook his head. “Just the Governor and one other.”

Maggie looked back from where she was supporting Hershel as they walked. “You think they’ll still come here?”

“They might,” Michonne answered. “We should send a group back over there to keep watch. Maybe talk to them about joining us. They have people and weapons.”

Glenn held the door open as they walked into the cellblock where Rick had his back to them, giving directions to a dazed looking group of men and women from Woodbury. Daryl felt Carol stiffen as soon as she saw Rick so he put his palm against the small of her back, hoping it would help her relax a bit.

The look on Rick’s face when he turned around went from relief to confusion to fear before anybody had a chance to say a word. “How?” It was all he could get out before Michonne and Hershel took over, explaining what happened and the plan to send some scouts out to the Governor’s new group.

Rick nodded and turned his gaze toward the place where Daryl and Carol stood, his head tilting to the side as he studied them. “You two were out there? Together?” His eyebrows knit together in confusion.

Daryl lifted his chin, chewing on his lower lip. “Yeah. Found Carol a couple weeks ago. Was at her place when she told me about a new group that’d set up down by the creek. We went to check it out. Saw what was happenin’ and Carol came up with a plan to get ‘em out.”

Rick looked back and forth between him and Carol for a few seconds like he was trying to put together a puzzle. In the end he just gave a little shake of his head and gestured toward the far end of the prison. “I’m sorry Carol, but you’ll have to stay in D Block while you’re here.”

“Rick,” Michonne interrupted. “She saved us. You heard that, right?”

“I heard,” Rick confirmed, shifting his feet and letting his hand rest on the butt of his pistol. “And I appreciate what she did- what you both did- but she can’t be with everybody else.”

“Nah.” Daryl wrapped his arm around Carol’s waist. “She’s stayin’ with me.”

Rick looked at the ground and let his head swing slowly from side to side like he was trying to figure out how to convince them that he was right. “It’s for her own protection,” his voice was low when he finally looked back up to meet Daryl’s eyes. “Ty knows.”

Carol flinched visibly and Rick took that as his cue to make his case to her directly. “I need to leave. To talk to these people who were with the Governor. Now, we can talk more when I get back, figure somethin’ out. But in the meantime, I can’t guarantee that you’ll be safe if you don’t stay out of sight.”

Daryl could see her start to nod and he shook his head again, tightening his grip on her waist. “Said nah,” he repeated. “She don’t need you to keep her safe. She can look out for herself. And if she can’t, I will.”

“Daryl, it’s alright.” She turned and rested her hand against his chest. “I can stay there for tonight. Just until everything’s settled. Then I’ll go in the morning.”

“Nuh uh.” He knew he should let her decide for herself, but somehow he just couldn’t take Rick tryin’ to send her away again after she’d saved two of their people. Shit, she’d probably saved the whole damn prison if they were bein’ honest. “She’s stayin’ with me.”

The corners of Rick’s eyes pinched for a second before he seemed to remember everybody else in the room and took a step back. “Alright. Let’s get a group together to go talk to these people.” He nodded once to Daryl before turning back to the others.

They decided Michonne, Glenn and Maggie would leave with Rick right away and the rest of them would stay back, sending reinforcements by noon the next day if they didn’t hear back. Daryl waited until the plan was settled before leading Carol back to his cell. She didn’t say a word the whole time, standing near one of the cement walls with her arms crossed across her chest while he lowered the curtain over the door.

“You don’t gotta stay here if you don’t want to,” he said, feeling like an asshole for insisting that she stay with him. He ducked his head and pressed his thumbnail between his teeth. “Or you can stay here and I’ll go sleep on the perch if you’d rather. Don’t want you to think I’m tryin’ to boss you around or nothin’. Just didn’t seem right to—“

He swallowed the rest of his words when she surged forward and covered his mouth with hers, her body pressed so firmly against his that he stumbled backwards, catching himself against the little table that he used to clean his weapons. He reached back to steady himself for a second before moving a hand to the back of her head and returning the kiss. She moaned softly when his tongue grazed her lower lip and he took the opportunity to slip it the rest of the way into her mouth, tasting the sweetness of the blackberries they’d picked earlier.

When she trailed her fingers up his arm and pulled gently on the hair at the base of his neck, his whole body trembled and every ounce of his blood seemed to rush to his cock, making it throb with anticipation. “Good lord,” he murmured against her lips.

He could feel her smile against his mouth and suddenly the relief that they’d made it out alive and were actually here, together, in his cell was overpowering. Without thinking he bent down and scooped her up, walking her over to his bunk as she giggled against his neck, trailing kisses down to his collarbone. The metal springs groaned when he laid her down and climbed on top of her, pressing his length against her and grinning to himself when she responded by moving her hips in a tight circle.

She slid her hands in between them next and massaged his cock through his jeans before popping the button and drawing the zipper down slowly. His breathing was already ragged and it took all of his willpower to pull his hips away, creating just enough space between them to make her whine at the loss of friction. He leaned down and took her earlobe between his teeth before whispering, “I wanna make you come.”

Her eyes were clamped tightly shut when he drew back to look at her, sliding one hand between her legs. “You want that?” he asked.

She drew her lower lip between her teeth and nodded. “Alright then, take them pants off,” he said, lifting his hips even higher so she could shimmy out of her pants and kick her boots to the floor.

He took a second just to look at her, writhing underneath him on this same bunk where he’d spent so much time thinking about all the things he’d like to do to her. She shuddered when his hands drifted to her knees, coaxing them apart with just the slightest pressure. Watching her open up for him made his cock jump and he had to reach down to pull it up against his stomach, letting the waistband of his boxers hold it in place.

Her eyes were open now and she watched him adjust himself, licking her lips and reaching for him. “Please,” she whispered. “I need you inside me.”

“Nuh uh.” He shook his head and let the corner of his mouth pull up in a smirk. “Not until you come.” He moved his hands back to her knees and slid them slowly up her inner thighs, opening them even wider. “You gonna come for me?”

“Yes,” she whispered.

“Good.” He bent down and sucked her clit into his mouth, sliding two fingers into her at the same time.

“Holy shit,” she breathed, bucking her hips against him as he continued to suck on her clit, using the same rhythm he’d set with his fingers. The steady pace seemed to drive her crazy and she kept trying to speed it up by wriggling her hips, but he pressed his other hand against her lower stomach, holding her still. He could tell she was close when she grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it up to her mouth, clenching it between her teeth and revealing her hardened nipples pushing against the black lace of her bra.

He couldn’t help reaching up to smooth his palm over those nipples, one at a time, letting the peaks just graze his skin until she was practically arching off the bed. It was when he pinched the right one between his thumb and forefinger that her body lost all control, spasming against his mouth and fingers with a flood of wetness.

There was no stopping himself when she reached down and clawed at his hips, drawing him up until the head of his cock found her opening, sliding inside with barely any effort. “God damn, you feel so good,” he groaned, using all his concentration not to come on the first stroke.

“Mmm.” She let her eyes close and ran her fingers up his arms to his shoulders. “So do you.”

The tight heat that wrapped around his dick was almost too much to take. He’d promised himself he wouldn’t just shoot inside her again without making sure it was alright first, but he was so close now, every thrust moving him closer to the edge.

“Carol,” he groaned. “I’m gonna come.” He moved to pull out, but she clamped her knees around his hips, holding him in place.

“Yes,” she moaned. “Do it, please. I want it.”

The feeling of her keeping him from pulling away was too much and he finally gave in, pulsing inside her and muffling his groan against her shoulder. They were both breathing heavily and she shivered when he grazed his teeth against her skin.

“You alright?” he asked, propping himself up on his elbows so he could look her in the eyes.

“Much better than that.” She smiled and reached up to draw a finger from his bottom lip down his throat to the center of his collarbone. “You?”

“’M good,” he started, “I been thinkin’ though, ‘bout what you said earlier. Bout headin’ for the coast.

“Yeah?” she asked.

“Thought maybe we could go together.” The flush was creeping up his neck but he decided to ignore it, focusing instead on trying to read the expression on her face. Maybe she was still wanting to be alone.

She frowned a little, her eyes searching his. “I don’t want to make you leave everybody here. I know you care about them.”

He nodded. It wasn’t a yes, but she hadn’t told him to fuck off either. “It don’t have to be forever. Was thinkin’ maybe it could be somethin’ like a vacation, you know? Just for a while. Could be good for us.”

“Just the two of us?”

“Yeah.” He still wasn’t sure if she felt like he was tryin’ to horn in on her plans. “What ya think?”

The frown disappeared and a spark lit up her eyes. “I think that’s the best idea I’ve heard in a long time.”


	8. Eight

Carol was still asleep when Daryl opened his eyes, her breaths coming slow and even on the pillow next to him. He stared at her, wondering how long it had been since she’d been able to let herself sleep so deeply. He hadn’t forgotten how it was out on the road, always keeping one eye open, just in case. Even in the little house she’d found, it would have been hard to relax completely.  
She’d woken up easily when Rick and the others got back a few hours earlier, Glenn coming to Daryl’s cell to tell him they’d struck a deal with the Governor’s group. That they’d be moving the group into the lower yard for now, letting them stay there until they could build some trust and then moving them into a new cell block once it was cleared.  
Carol had sat up in bed when Glenn came knocking, but didn’t go with Daryl to the door, like she didn’t think that the deal was any of her concern. It made him wonder if the trip they’d talked about was really just a vacation. Maybe she’d never feel comfortable moving back into the prison.  
He shifted his weight on the bunk carefully, trying not to wake her as he turned on his side and tucked one arm behind his head. He’d already kicked off the blanket in his sleep. The afternoon sun was beating against the thin curtains that hung over the bars and the heat in the room was almost stifling. Her brow creased slightly and he held his breath, waiting for sleep to erase the small frown from her lips, but she woke up instead, her eyelids fluttering open and looking at him with confusion for a few seconds before she seemed to remember where she was.  
She smiled at him then, running one hand up the length of his back and pulling him closer. “Hey.” The light in her eyes made his heart swell and adrenaline pump through his veins. He still couldn’t believe she was actually here with him.  
“Mornin’,” he met her eyes for a second before that old shyness overtook him and forced him to look down toward his feet, only sneaking another glance at her when he thought maybe she wasn’t looking anymore. “Should be getting up soon,” he mumbled. “Damn near slept half the day away.”  
“So that’s why it’s so hot in here,” she said, reaching up over her head and stretching all the way through to her toes.  
“Yeah. Shoulda picked one farther away from the windows,” he said, swinging his legs out of the bunk and letting the soles of his feet rest on the cool concrete floor.  
She sat up and adjusted her tank top, scooting over to sit next to him on the edge of the bed. “But then you wouldn’t have all this nice light.” Her fingertips were cool against his scalp as she threaded them through his hair and he leaned into the touch, turning to press his lips to hers once they were close enough.  
God, he wished he’d had the balls to do this sooner. Maybe if they’d been together when people started getting sick she could have talked to him about Karen and David. Maybe he could’ve stopped her. But there was no going back. It was done. The best he could hope for now was that going away for a while would let things settle down between her and Rick.  
She pulled away slowly, her soft voice interrupting his thoughts. “Daryl?”  
“Yeah?”  
“About last night,” she started.  
“Hmm?” His heart dropped, afraid that she was about to change her mind about letting him come with her.  
She twisted her fingers in her lap. “Were you serious about what you said? About going to the coast?”  
He nodded quickly. “Mmmhmm. If you want me.”  
The relief in her eyes was clear and it took a huge weight off his shoulders knowing that she really was happy he was coming with her. “Of course I do.” She gave him a smile that faded too quickly. “But would you be ok with leaving soon? I mean, what do you think about leaving today?”  
She barely paused long enough for him to hear her question before she started up again. “I understand if you’re not ready. And if you want I can go now and we can meet up at the cabin in a few weeks or whenever you think is a good time to go. It’s just that Michonne and Hershel made it sound like the girls are doing well with the Woodbury couple that took them in and I don’t want to ruin any of that by being here and making things confusing for them and—“  
He interrupted her before she could talk herself out of it. “Now’s as good a time as any.”  
She took a breath and gave a relieved laugh. “And I don’t have anything to pack so I guess I’m ready when you are.”  
“Well, umm, about that, uh, ” Daryl mumbled as he got up, pulling his pants up over his hips, and then crouching in front of her before he’d finished buttoning them, his belt buckle clanking as he grabbed the bottom of the bunk with one hand and reached underneath with the other, sliding out a small cardboard box. “Got your stuff outta your cell after you were gone. Wanted to leave it, but they were cleaning it out since we’re so crowded now. Wasn’t gonna let ‘em throw it out.”  
He averted his eyes and stood up to finish getting dressed. “Didn’t go through it or nothin’.” His face was starting to flame as he waited for her to say something. “Was gonna bring it to you yesterday, but I was on the bike and all.” For some reason he couldn’t stop talking, suddenly feeling like a major creep for keeping her stuff under his bed.  
When he finally worked up the courage to meet her eyes, they were glassy with tears, but she was smiling so he guessed she wasn’t too pissed off about it.  
“Thank you,” she whispered, crossing the space between them with two quick steps and wrapping her arms around his waist, her cheek pressed against his chest.  
“Weren’t nothin’,” he said, letting his hands rest lightly on her hips as a bead of sweat escaped from his hairline, tracing a single line down his back.  
“You ready to get outta here then?” he asked.  
She didn’t move from her position against his chest. “You’re really sure you’re ok with this?”  
“Mmmhmm.” He murmured into her hair, placing a soft kiss to the crown of her head before pulling back to look at her.  
“And if something happens while we’re gone?” she asked, meeting his gaze with concern etched across her features.  
“They’ll handle it.” He tried to sound more confident than he really felt. Of course he was worried. There was no way to know what would happen with this new group, and if there was one thing he’d learned in life it was to withhold trust until it was earned. The trouble was, there was never gonna be a good time to go. “It’ll be alright,” he repeated.  
He must have sounded more sure that time because she nodded and turned around to pull some clothes out of the box, transferring them into an empty backpack.


	9. Nine

Daryl stiffened as soon as they opened the door that led to the gravel parking area. They’d skipped most of the goodbyes so they wouldn’t draw any more attention to Carol being back at the prison, but he’d left her to finish packing earlier and gone to tell Rick that they’d be out of there soon. Daryl should’ve known he wouldn’t be able to leave it alone. That was the problem with Rick. He always had to try to fix shit. Even when shit couldn’t be fixed.

Carol noticed the two men leaning against the station wagon a split second after he did and stopped in her tracks, a small gasp escaping her lips. “What’s he doing?” she asked, the fear and uncertainty making her voice tremble.

“Don’t know,” Daryl answered. “Whatever it is, I’ll handle it.”

They moved toward Rick and Tyreese warily.

“What’d ya bring him out here for?” Daryl gestured to Tyreese, shifting his body so he was positioned slightly in front of Carol.

“You said you’d be coming back.” Rick held up both hands like he was trying to diffuse the situation, which was pretty fucking stupid since he was the one who’d gotten them into it in the first place. “I thought it’d be better to talk things out now, before you go.”

“Ain’t no need to talk about nothin’,” Daryl said.

“Yeah, there is.” Rick was doing his cop voice now, talking slow and steady to try and keep Daryl from blowing up. “I can’t take the chance on things going south when you come back.”

“Said I’d handle it,” Daryl spat.

“Nobody’s gonna handle me.” Tyreese moved toward them, the rifle slung over his shoulder making Daryl’s fingers itch for his crossbow.

He shifted again so he was completely in front of Carol now.

“It’s alright.” Carol put her hand on his shoulder and stepped around him, approaching Tyreese with her eyes cast to the ground. “Let him talk.” She seemed defeated; ready to accept whatever punishment Tyreese thought was necessary.

Ty spoke through a clenched jaw. “I hate what you did,” he said bluntly.

Carol flinched but didn’t speak, letting the man continue uninterrupted.

“Thought I hated you when I found out you were the one that did it.” Tyreese sighed and adjusted the strap on his rifle. Daryl tensed, but this time it was Rick’s hand on his shoulder that stilled him.

“I still hate what you did,” Ty continued. “But I don’t hate you. You were trying to protect the group. I understand that, even if I don’t agree with it. Karen wouldn’t have made it. I know that now.” He paused, taking a shaky breath as he tried to hold back the emotion in his voice. “I just wish I could have told her goodbye.”

Carol drew in a deep breath through her nose and quickly wiped at the tears that spilled over her cheeks. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

Ty’s mouth was tight when he spoke again, but his eyes only reflected sadness, not anger. “Just thought you should know. If you leave I don’t want it to be because of me. I can’t have that on my conscience.”

“It ain’t on you,” Daryl interjected, seeing that Carol seemed to be at a loss. “We was leavin’ either way.”

“Alright then.” Tyreese nodded and turned back toward the prison, leaving them alone with Rick again.

Carol was crying openly now, her hands covering her face.

“Ain’t you got somewhere to be?” Daryl growled at him.

“Yeah, I probably do.” Rick stared down at his boots for a good twenty seconds before getting up the nerve to say what was on his mind. “I’m sorry if that upset you.” He bent down to try to meet Carol’s eyes. “I just wanted you to know that don’t have to go.” He cleared his throat and stared at the ground again. “I don’t want you to go… I…” He winced like it was painful to say the words. “I’m sorry Carol. I was wrong.”

It was too little too late as far as Daryl was concerned, but Carol looked up, wiping at the tears that were still streaming down her cheeks.

“You did what you thought was right,” she said, sniffling softly. “So did I. That’s all we have left now.”

Rick shook his head. “I did, but it wasn’t right. I know that now.” He shifted his focus back to Daryl with a silent plea. “Stay. Please. Both of you. We—“ He paused to correct himself. “I need you here.”

“And what about last night?” Daryl demanded, taking a step closer to Rick as his anger boiled over. “When you wanted to lock her up down in D block?”

Rick stiffened, taking a step back and holding up his hands to put some space between them again. “That was for her protection,” Rick argued. “I hadn’t talked to Ty about it. I didn’t know how he’d react to having her back here.”

Carol put a hand on Daryl’s forearm, instantly cooling the fire that pulsed through his veins. “Thank you, Rick,” she said. “But I still need to go away for a while. It’s just too hard to be here right now.”

“Will you be back?” Rick asked, looking back and forth between them.

Daryl watched Carol, trying his best to read her thoughts. Even as close as they’d gotten over the years she was still a mystery to him in so many ways.

She glanced back at Daryl before answering Rick’s question. Part of him knew what her answer would be and that she was doing it for him. That was just like her. She never thought about herself. He felt guilty about it, but it was also one of the things he loved about her. He’d never met anybody in his whole damn life who was half as selfless as her.

“We will,” she answered for them both.

Rick seemed to accept that, leaving them to pack up the station wagon and get in, driving past the new tents and RVs on their way to the main gate and out to the highway.


	10. Ten

Daryl held the bandana tight to his face and peered over the edge of the pool, Carol’s fingers clutching nervously at the back of his vest like she was afraid he might fall in. They’d been living in this new world long enough that he thought he’d gotten used to the smell of death. It permeated everything. Floated on the breeze when a herd passed within twenty miles. An ever-present dull gray backdrop to their lives.

This smell was different. It was technicolor. Vivid in a way that smacked you in the face and made your eyes water, forcing you to wake up and pay attention.

Carol wasn’t gripping his vest anymore. She’d moved a few feet away and was retching at the base of a potted palm tree. He shook his head at the corpses that writhed in the blackened water, their rotting flesh swirling around them like strands of kelp. They gnashed their teeth and clawed at the tiled walls of the pool, working themselves into such a frenzy that the water churned.

“So much for swimmin’ pools and movie stars,” he mumbled, moving back to the spot where Carol stood, rinsing her mouth with a bottle of water. “Let’s keep moving.”

She nodded and wiped her chin with the back of her hand. “We’re gonna have to go pretty far to get away from that smell.” She looked back over her shoulder as they followed the path toward the empty motel.

Just as they turned the last corner to the parking lot, their footsteps stuttered to a stop. Daryl blinked in confusion. The highway that ran in front of the motel was alive, moving in a steady rhythm like the waves on the beach behind them. Those same waves that must have masked the sound of a herd approaching.

“Shit,” he muttered, ducking back against the building with Carol tight against his back. For the first time on their trip he wished they wouldn’t have swapped the station wagon for the bike before they left. The bike was perfect for avoiding walkers, but sometimes you really needed to just plow through a few of them. The front of the herd was thin enough that they probably could’ve made it through if they had the solid walls of a car to protect them, but they couldn’t chance it on the bike.

“They haven’t see us,” Carol whispered against his shoulder. “We can wait it out.”

He nodded and then inched forward, the stucco façade scraping against his back as he tried to get a better look at the size of the herd.

“Fuck,” he spat. “It’s big, but we should be alright if nothin’ draws ‘em.”

She nodded and slumped against the wall next to him. “Some vacation, huh?” She was smiling but he could tell she felt bad, blaming herself for everything that went wrong just like always.

“Ain’t your fault,” he said, keeping his voice low. “Made it this far without too much trouble. ‘Sides, the company’s good.”

She gave him a real smile that time and he smiled back even though he could feel himself turning red. It always felt like winning a prize when he actually managed to say the right thing.

They’d been standing there in silence for a few minutes, watching the herd pass by, when a loud splash came from the direction of the pool. They both tensed, looking back to see if they could tell what happened, but before they had a chance to say anything, their attention was drawn back to the road where a couple of the walkers from the herd were moving curiously in their direction.

A second splash drew more interest from the herd, which was now splitting apart, with more and more walkers coming their way.

“Grab your stuff,” he said, hustling toward the bike and pulling off the saddlebags. 

“We can hole up in the motel until they’re gone. Let’s get in there now before too many follow us.”

Carol jumped into action, running over to the bike and pulling her bag off the back before following him to the front door of the motel. Daryl was already using the butt of his crossbow to break out the glass. The noise drew even more walkers but if they could just get inside and out of sight, they had enough supplies to stay put until the threat passed.

Daryl reached through the broken window and fumbled with the deadbolt, trying to turn it the wrong way at first and cursing under his breath as he adjusted the angle of his arm.

“Daryl.” Carol said his name like a warning.

The lock finally clicked and he yanked the door open just as Carol turned to plunge her knife into the skull of the first walker from the herd, kicking it away as she pulled the blade free. They rushed into the lobby and slammed the door shut behind them.

“This way,” Daryl yelled over the noise of the walkers pounding against the front doors. They ran down the hallway to their left, frantically checking the first few doors and finding them locked. There was a sharp crack as the walkers started to break through the front doors, their sheer force enough to shatter the sun beaten wood.

“Keep goin’,” he said jerking his crossbow off his shoulder and turning around to get ready to shoot.

“Daryl!” she screamed.  
He looked back to where she stood in the middle of the hallway, pointing to the other end where more walkers were streaming in.

“Where the hell are they comin’ from?” He backed up a few steps and lowered his shoulder, slamming it into the nearest door. It flew open and they rushed in, working quickly to block it with a large dresser.

“The window?” Carol huffed.

He nodded and ran over, pure adrenaline giving him the strength to yank it up through the layers of paint that had been holding it shut. The dresser was inching forward with each thud against the door and Carol rushed past him, dropping through the window to the grass below. He followed after her, handing her his bow and then diving outside headfirst.

He’d barely gotten to his feet when he realized they were standing in front of a sea of walkers. Most of them were moving toward the pool, drawn by the noise of others falling over the edge one at a time, but a few had taken notice of them and were heading in their direction.

“We have to fight through,” she said, her knuckles white as she gripped her knife.

“That way.” He pointed down the beach where a small paddleboat was half buried in the sand. “Might be our best bet if it still floats.”

She nodded and raised her knife.

“Just keep movin’, no matter what,” he said, raising the crossbow to eyelevel and picking off a walker that was approaching Carol from behind, its mouth hanging open in a slobbering growl.

They fought their way to the beach, Daryl quickly giving up his crossbow in favor of the machete at his hip and Carol wielding her knife with practiced precision. Their feet sunk in the dry sand when they hit the beach, struggling to stay ahead of the walkers that had been drawn by their movement. Fortunately the sand seemed to be giving the walkers some trouble too as they shambled forward, stumbling and crawling after them.

They dropped their packs as soon as they reached the boat, using their hands to dig out the sand that had filled the hull and clearing out as much as they could before Carol had to turn and fight again while Daryl grabbed the bow and pulled with everything he had. The entire herd seemed to have been drawn away from the highway now and the beach was teeming with walkers on every side. The open water was their only option.

Daryl gave one more pull and the boat finally came free, knocking him on his ass with the momentum and revealing a hole the size of a baseball in the stern.

“Fuck!” he yelled. “It’s got a hole.”

Carol raised a foot to kick a walker in the chest before turning and stabbing another in the eye. “It’s either that or swim,” she called back over her shoulder.  
He grunted in frustration and threw their packs in the boat, dragging it backwards toward the water. “Come on!”

She turned and ran after him, helping to push the small boat out into the water. They waded until they were up to their chests and then pulled themselves into the boat, pausing to look back at the walkers that fell into the surf behind them. They only had a few seconds to take a breath before they realized the small waves were pushing them back toward the beach.

“You paddle, I’ll bail,” Carol said, ripping open her pack and finding a small bowl to scoop the water that poured in every time the boat bobbed in the swell. Daryl dropped down into the seat and found the pedals, pushing his legs until they burned from the exertion.

They continued like that until they were well away from the beach. Far enough away that Daryl started to worry over a new problem. If they couldn’t keep up with the water they were taking on they might sink and he didn’t know if they’d have the endurance to swim all the way back if it came to that.

He stood carefully and turned around so he was leaning over the seat far enough to help her bail, but not adding more weight to the stern that was already sagging in the water. He yanked an empty water bottle from the saddlebag and sliced off the top with his knife, dipping it into the water over and over until there was only an inch or two left in the bottom of the boat.

“Take a break,” he said. “I got it for now.”

She sucked in a breath and moved to the front of the boat, pulling out a full bottle and taking a long drink.

“You a good swimmer?” he asked.

She just nodded, conserving her breath as best she could. “You?” she panted.

“Not great,” he answered, which was a wild exaggeration. He was a shit swimmer, barely able to dog paddle.

She shaded her eyes and surveyed the small islands that formed a barrier between the open ocean and the beach. “You think we could make it to one of those?”

“Don’t know.” He squinted at the water. “Could be people living out there already.”

“You think it’s safe?” She turned back and held out the bottle of water for him. He accepted it and chugged the rest in one swallow.

“Safer than stayin’ out here.”


	11. Eleven

He’d never felt anything as good as the sand under his feet when they finally made it to the nearest island after paddling for the better part of an hour. Carol hopped out too, helping him drag the boat up high on the beach so the water wouldn’t pull it away. They collapsed next to each other on the damp sand, staring up at the cloudless sky and trying to catch their breath.

Carol was the one to break the silence first, turning to him with sad eyes. “I’m sorry. This was a stupid idea.”

“Hell no it wasn’t,” he answered. “We’re laying on a beach, ain’t we? Seems like it worked out just fine.”

She rolled over on her side, propping herself up with an elbow and tracing the edge of his vest with her fingertip, letting her eyes wander down to his black jeans and work boots. He couldn’t help returning the soft smile that she gave him.

“What?” he asked.

“It’s just that,” she started, “here on this beach, in this outfit, you sort of look… ridiculous.”

“Pfft,” he stood up, pulling her with him and wrapping his arms around her waist. 

“Didn’t have time to change, did I?” He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers, letting his hands roam over her hips. She stretched up to wrap her arms around his neck, slipping her tongue into his mouth so softly that he couldn’t help tightening his grip on her ass and pulling her closer. When she twisted her fingers in his hair and moaned into his mouth he let go of her abruptly, walking back over to the boat and throwing his crossbow over his shoulder. “Better check this place out before dark,” he said, walking by her while she stood with her mouth hanging open.

“Daryl, wha—“ she started.

“That’s for sayin’ I look ridiculous.” He stood there smirking with his hands on his hips.

“You tease,” she huffed as she picked up her pack and moved to follow him down the beach.  
#  
They were able to check out the entire island by dusk. It was really more like a large rock, barely more than a half mile across. Nothing that would appeal to anyone for a long-term stay. Carol heated up a can of soup over the fire while Daryl did his best to patch the hole in the boat with some plastic and duct tape in the dim light, just in case they needed to make another quick getaway.

Waves lapped against the shore while they ate, passing the can back and forth as they chewed in silence. He flicked the hair out of his eyes and watched her intently as she spooned a carrot into her mouth, her eyes focused on the foam that raced up the sand with each breaking swell.

He cleared his throat, wanting to talk with her but hating to interrupt the spell she was under. “This what you had in mind?” he asked.

“Mmm.” She set down the empty can and scooted close enough that he could drape his arm around her shoulders. “Beats the hell out of a swimming pool full of walker guts.”

He grunted in agreement. That smell was gonna haunt him forever. He was surprised the breeze didn’t carry it all the way to the island. The thought made him inhale deeply, realizing that for the first time since all this started he couldn’t smell even a hint of death or rot in the air. It was a shock to his system at first, bringing back a flood of memories of the way things were before everything went bad.

“You think things will ever be the same?” she asked, seeming to read his mind the way she always did. “Like the way they were before?”

“Probably not for a long ass time,” he answered, burying his face in her hair as she nuzzled into his neck. How the woman managed to smell so good after a day spent fighting walkers he’d never understand. He turned his head to sniff at himself and immediately wondered how she could stand to sit so close to him.

“Feel like goin’ for a swim?” he asked, his face flushing hot when he remembered they didn’t have any swimsuits, embarassed despite the fact that they’d been together constantly for the past two weeks and had sex every night that they weren’t too exhausted from the days’ travels.

“Yes,” she answered simply, pushing herself up to stand in front of him and dragging her shirt over her head. He watched as she unclasped her bra and let it fall from her arms, the cool night air causing her nipples to harden in the light of the half moon. His tongue darted out to wet his lips involuntarily and she smiled down at him, unbuttoning her pants and sliding them over her hips. Her underwear came down next at such an agonizingly slow pace that his gaze flickered up to her face to see if she was doing it on purpose.

She smirked at him and he growled. “Who’s the tease now?”

Before she could respond he reached up to hook his fingers around the fabric and jerked it down to her ankles in one swift motion. She yelped as he wrapped his arms around her thighs and pressed his face between her legs, inhaling her sweet scent so deeply that his cock jumped.

Distracted by the throbbing in his groin, he loosened his grip just enough that she was able to squirm away, slinking toward the dark water and beckoning him to follow with just one glance over her shoulder.

He trailed after her, shedding his clothes along the way and pausing at the water’s edge to admire the way the moonlight illuminated her silver hair and milky white skin. The small waves were lapping at her thighs and he tried to focus as he waded out to meet her. He wanted to commit every detail to memory. She was beautiful in a way that made every other woman he’d ever noticed seem plain in comparison; the perfect balance of strength and softness that made her a queen in this new world.

She turned when he reached her, snaking her hands over his shoulders and leading him deeper into the warm water. They took turns dipping their heads under, washing the last of the sweat and dirt from their bodies as they floated together. Tiny droplets clung to her eyelashes, sparkling there until he kissed them away, tasting the salt on his lips.

When she wrapped one leg over his hip he sunk into her without hesitation. They moved slowly, letting the ocean set a rhythm that made every muscle in his body quiver with anticipation. It wasn’t long before she was moaning softly in his ear and he had to pull her other leg up around his waist, pushing himself into her deeper and deeper until she let herself fall back, floating weightless as his thrusts became more purposeful. He supported her lower back with one hand and let the other drift to her breasts, standing proudly out of the water that flowed around them, her nipples drawn into tight little buds.

“Jesus Christ, Carol,” he groaned, aching to fill her with his release. She was too good for him. He’d always known that. But somehow she’d chosen him. Trusted him enough to open up this way, her legs spread wide for him as he moved deep inside her.

She squeezed around him even tighter as the words fell from his mouth. As if his voice alone could make her come. Her hands came to rest on his forearms and squeezed, giving him just enough leverage to sink a little farther into the warmth that surrounded him. She gasped at the new angle, grinding her hips against his so insistently that stars bloomed in front of his eyes. Before he could take another breath, his hips were stuttering wildly, his cock pulsing as he filled her with his seed.  
She cried out and he pulled her even closer, rolling her nipple between his thumb and forefinger so hard that she jerked against him, her legs gripping his waist like a vice.  
When her spasms stopped he pulled her back up to him, slipping his tongue between her open lips and letting it glide across the roof of her mouth. She moaned and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, clinging to him as they bobbed in the open water, the moon glinting off the water like a million tiny diamonds.


	12. Twelve

Morning came way too soon and Daryl found himself turning to bury his head against Carol’s side in an attempt to block the bright morning sun. But when he rolled over she was already gone.

He sat up slowly, shaking the sand from his hair and shielding his eyes. When his vision cleared he thought maybe he was still dreaming. Carol was lounging on the sand down by the water, wearing a dark blue bikini that highlighted everything he loved about her body. The high cut bottoms accentuated her long legs that were stretched out in front of her and the top was tied around her neck in a way that framed her cleavage perfectly.

“Whatcha doin’?” he asked when he walked up next to her.

“Sunbathing,” she answered, shielding her eyes and looking up at him like it was the most normal thing in the world. He guessed it would have been at one time, before the world ended.

He raised an eyebrow and gazed appreciatively at the suit she was wearing. 

“Where’d ya get that?”

She blushed and turned her eyes back to the ground. “I picked it up at one of those tourist traps we stopped at on the way. I know it probably looks silly. I just couldn’t help myself.”

He frowned and shook his head. “What the hell are you talkin’ about? You look so goddamn hot I don’t know if I should try to kiss you or take your damn picture.”

She peeked back up at him nervously. “Really?”

“Fuck yes.”

This time she laughed and stood up, slipping her arms around his waist and pulling him close. “Good, because I got you one too.”

He pressed a kiss to her temple and returned the hug. “Don’t think it’ll fit.”

“Not a bikini.” She let go of him and jogged over to her pack, oblivious to the way he stared at her ass the whole time. When she came back she pulled a pair of swim trunks out of the bag and offered them to him.

He couldn’t remember the last time he’d worn a pair of shorts. Jeans didn’t do much to stop a walker, but at least it was something. Shorts were a risk he wasn’t willing to take, even on the hottest Georgia days. But hell, if there was ever a chance to do it, it was here.

She watched as he changed into the shorts right there on the beach. There didn’t seem to be much reason to be embarrassed these days. She’d already seen everything he had to offer and there wasn’t anybody else around to say shit.  
They stayed like that for the rest of the morning, only getting up to grab something for breakfast and a bottle of water to share.

He was lying on his back with one arm draped over his eyes when she turned to face him, running her fingers through the hair at his temple that was damp with sweat.

“Daryl?”

“Hmm?”

“Can I ask you something?” Her fingers fluttered to a stop and he dropped his arm, watching warily as her features shifted into a frown.

“Hmm?” he repeated.

She took a quick breath. “Do you feel guilty?”

“’Bout what?” he asked.

“About leaving?” The tremble in her voice told him that she did. The woman felt guilty about everything. That was one of the things they had in common.

“Hell no,” he answered, sitting up to look her in the eyes. “They’ll do fine without us for a while. Don’t need to be babysittin’ them all the damn time.”

“I know—“ she started, scooping up a handful of sand and sifting it through her fingers, “I just feel like I shouldn’t be out here like this. Relaxing on a beach while they could be in trouble. If the Governor’s group decided to fight or if more people got sick or—“

He shook his head and reached out to cup her cheek in his palm. “Hey,” he said softly. “We get to start over. You and me. And that’s what we’re doin’. Don’t matter if we go back next week or if we never go back. It’s ok to get away if that’s what you need.”

“I want to go back,” she said. “They’re our family. Even Rick. Even after everything that happened. I promise I’ll go back eventually. I’m just not ready yet and I feel selfish for taking you with me. For taking you away from them.”

“You ain’t gotta feel bad,” he argued. “I’m gonna be with you no matter what unless you tell me to go. When Rick told me what he did to you—“ his voice broke on the last word and he had to clear his throat, “I wanted to kill him. He’s like a brother to me, especially now that Merle’s gone, but I swear I wanted to choke the life out of him right then and there for leaving you like that. And that was when I knew for sure,” he paused, unable to finish the sentence.

“Knew what?” she asked, her voice barely audible over the pounding waves.

“That I love ya.” His voice dropped to a whisper. It shouldn’t be hard to say. They’d already told each other back at the Governor’s camp, but that felt different, like they were forced to say it just in case something happened to either of them. It felt like a goodbye then. “Have since the farm, I think. Just wasn’t sure what to do about it.”

She laughed softly, tears sliding down her cheeks as she flung her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his in a salty kiss. “I love you too.”


End file.
